Alemar reeled from Premoran’s words, though she seemed the only one surprised by them. The blood pounded in her ears.
He began to recite:
‘“Could it be? Will it come to pass?
Is the gloaming of the trees verily here at last?
What of all that they protect?
What of those they hinder?
Is it due to their neglect
or to the storms that linger?
After his fall?
After it all?
After the hounds of death come to call?
After strife has taken the life from the ones who fear her most?
Who can save a bleeding heart
when none dare come too near her?
After eleven have been plucked
from the darker death they sing of?
After what has come so near,
still has so far to go,
After what the wise ones fear,
and can’t find the words to speak of
After time has passed beyond
the prophet and the seer?
Who shall come to bind the one,
into its soul to bring her?
Not a child,
A youngling though regardless of her might,
A star upon a virgin skin,
a mark that’s found its light.
Must she rise before the storm?
Will she stand or cower?
Who can know what is to come?
Who will claim the power?
To accept or decry,
to proclaim or renounce,
to remain or to leave,
to withdraw or to pounce,
The weight of choice is so heavy upon her,
how will she find her way?
Will this be our final hour
or the dawn of a brand new day?’“
He looked at Alemar. “This section is quite clear now. I have read this passage over and over, and until this moment I failed to understand it.”
Alemar blanched and looked away. Her skin was afire.
“Need I explain it, Princess?” he asked.
“To me, yes,” Giles answered in her stead. “I heard the words but the meanings you speak of elude me,” he confessed.
“Why don’t you decipher the verse for him,” Premoran urged Alemar.
She looked up to the sky and closed her eyes as if she was trying to picture something. Opening them once more, they were bright and sharp. “Well, for one thing, I know what the ‘star upon the virgin skin’ is.” Her hands shook but her chest no longer heaved. “I can’t say for certain who ‘the one’ is that the verse refers to. If I had read this myself at any other time, I would have thought it was the First.”
“Ah, so would I have, my dear. But in the Book itself, the word ‘one’ was not capitalized. I was confused by that for many a year,” Premoran recalled. “With the advent of the new tree, I revisited numerous passages, this one included, and as with quite a number of them, this took on new meaning.” The crescendo of howls rose as they spoke. “Our time is short.” He looked around. “We may not make it to Pardatha by as direct a route as I hoped. We’ll rest another moment only.”
“You believe the word refers to the youngling?” Teetoo inquired. He leaned over and fed something to his horse.
“I do now. The word we’ve found most comfortable for the sapling in Pardatha is the self-same word that is used in this passage, though it names another,” he said. “And the eleventh shard had been plucked.”
“It speaks, too, of the bond,” Teetoo agreed.
“Yet it speaks as if there is still a choice,” Alemar was incredulous. “How could anyone not embrace such an opportunity?”
“One has refused the bond before and has emerged again in the midst of this turmoil,” Premoran reminded them.
“Sidra!” Alemar said. “But I can’t tell from the words whether the choice to accept the bond or refuse it is the right one,” she admitted.
“Neither can I,” Premoran said. “But are you surprised by that?” He didn’t wait for an answer. Pulling up on his reins he said, “Let’s go. We’ve been here too long already. If we cannot evade these beasts, we’ll have to adjust our plans. The least expected path is sometimes the safest. I will not have them follow us all the way to Pardatha. “
They rode hard over rough terrain, and whenever they rested, the yammering began again… but louder. Premoran led them to a copse on a small hill. The tightly knit trees afforded them a temporary shelter.
“It’s obvious we can’t outrun them,” Premoran stated what they all already knew. “There’s a town nearby. Peltaran. I have a friend there.”
The name was unfamiliar to the others.
“It will be safe in this part of the land?” Alemar asked.
“Safer than it’s become here,” he blistered. “But we’ll have to keep our identities concealed. I’ll do what I can as well to assist. One night. That will be enough.”
“A friend?” Giles questioned.
“A dear friend. It has not been easy for him to live so, as you can imagine. He will tell us the best way to proceed once we leave there and help us create a diversion.”
“Colton’s last attempt at destroying Seramour originated from the outskirts of this place,” Teetoo said. “The people of Peltaran no doubt aided and abetted his efforts.”
“And my friend apprised us of what he could. One cannot remain blind simply because one’s line of sight is obstructed. We must have eyes in all areas if we are able to,” Premoran added. He patted his horse on the rump. “Water them and let’s be off. They’ll locate us soon enough. Our scents are on the wind.”
Within two hours’ time, the outline of a stone structure became visible on the far horizon. As they approached, it grew precipitously in height. Premoran slowed his horse to a trot.
“Is that the town’s wall?” Giles yelled from behind, surprised a meager town would have such a massive palisade surrounding it.
“Yes. But whether my brother had this ridiculous thing constructed to keep the people in or the enemy out is an unanswered question,” Premoran scoffed. “More likely he maintains it merely because it’s on the border of the southern most woods of Lormarion, and he considers it to be a statement of sorts to the elves.”
“What kind of people would live in a place like this?” Alemar asked, loping up beside him.
“Frightened ones,” the wizard answered her. “Pull up.” He dismounted behind a large boulder and tied his horse’s reins to a branch that stuck out of it. “We can’t be recognized here. The people who live in Peltaran are dangerous. Don’t speak to anyone. Keep your hoods up and your eyes forward. Should we be questioned, I will respond.”
“What explanation will you give them for our presence?” Giles asked.
“We’re travelers from the west wishing only to refresh ourselves and renew our supplies. We intend to spend one night, and be off with the dawn,” he replied.
“To where?” Alemar asked.
“Talamar to arrange for the transport of a supply of Polong oil for our town,” his eyes were sly.
“But Talamar’s been destroyed,” Giles said.
“Of course. But we know nothing of this yet. We’ll be suitably shocked and dismayed and we will need to consider our alternatives. When we leave, our destination will therefore be uncertain,” Premoran explained.
“Where are we from?” Alemar asked.
“Warton,” he replied.
“An ugly name,” Giles mumbled.
“An ugly name for an ugly town,” Premoran said, looking out over Giles’ head. “Quick, come to me. They’ve spotted us.” They gathered around him in a tight circle. Premoran lifted his right hand and drew a series of quick rings in the air. The wind rustled the scattered leaves and the air grew warm around them. “There,” he said, dropping his arm. “Now put your hoods up and keep them there.”
Alemar grabbed the side of the cloth that hung behind her head and felt a
braid of unfamiliar hair hanging over her shoulder. She ran her fingers over her face, a nose that felt considerably larger than usual and eyebrows that were coarse and scraggly.
“My, my, Princess. How you have changed,” Teetoo remarked.
“And you too, my friend,” she responded. Teetoo’s face was deeply lined and wrinkled. Weathered skin covered it and his head was draped in long, dull hair. “You Giles, on the other hand, have made a turn for the better,” Alemar kidded him. The big warrior’s eyes were set into his haggard face, and his short, blonde hair was knotted and wild. A long scar ran from where his left eyebrow should have been, straight across to his lip.
Premoran was much shorter and his mid section protruded like a woman’s with child would. His teeth stuck out, oversized and rotten. He looked them each up and down.
“Let’s go. We’ll locate my friend, tell him of our concerns and be off. Remember, speak to no one!” he warned again.
When they arrived at the entrance, they looked like a motley crew of road weary merchants. Their horses were suddenly laden with all kinds of wares, though none of any value, and everything they transported was dirt splattered and worn.
“What is that awful smell?” Alemar whispered to Premoran, whom she rode beside.
“Us, my dear,” he answered and kept riding.
The big gates were closed when they reached them. Two guards stood upon the ramparts above, burly and gruff.
“Who goes there?” one shouted down.
Premoran smiled through broken and stained teeth.
“We come to trade our wares for some food and supplies,” he crowed.
“Why here? What brings you here?”
“Where else could we go? Are there other towns in these parts?” the wizard asked.
“No,” the guard answered, unconcerned. “How long do you expect to stay?”
“Until dawn, if we can. We don’t want to travel these roads during the night if we can help it,” he cowered down.
The two guards consulted for a moment. “Where did you come from?”
“Mandalor. We were there for two weeks, though we hail from Warton.”
“I’ve haven’t heard of Warton. Why’d you leave it and why are you here?”
“I told you, Sir, we need to refresh our supplies. We left Mandalor because the situation had grown dangerous for us. We are not fighters, my friend,” Premoran appealed, pointing to his mangey companions. “The Master was recruiting for a new campaign and we thought it prudent to leave.”
“Where will you go from here?” the other guard chimed in.
“To Talamar,” Premoran looked up at him.
“Talamar? You’ve not heard?” he asked.
“Heard what, sir?” Premoran responded, eyes wide.
“The city’s no more and its leader is dead,” he said, emotionless.
“Dead?” Premoran looked aghast. “We heard no such tidings.”
“Well, it’s true nonetheless!” the guard responded, unconcerned. “One day and one night. No more. We’ve enough to handle with our own these days.”
The mechanism controlling the gates churned and the big doors opened inward. Premoran led the way and as soon as the tail of Teetoo’s horse passed inside, the gates shut.
“Doesn’t anyone live here?” Giles asked as they made their way down the deserted street. Not a person was in sight and all the windows and doors were sealed.
“Do you see the mark on the door?” Teetoo asked, pointing to a crooked white cross on a doorway to their right.
“A number of the buildings on the main road had them as well,” Alemar replied.
“They’re not ornamental. They mean something far more sinister, I fear,” Premoran said.
“What do you think they stand for?” Giles asked.
“These people are governed by fear and intimidation. Their homes have been chosen for a reason.” There seemed no pattern to them, random as they were.
“Why don’t they resist?” Giles asked.
“Think of our own people,” Alemar reminded him. “They were convinced for so long that remaining isolated was the right path to take.”
“But they never allied themselves with the Dark One!” Giles replied.
“No? Whose side did they serve then?” Alemar asked. The bitter feelings remained.
“Here they know very well who’s in control, yet they accept it. There is a difference,” Premoran said.
“But it’s easy to deceive oneself,” Alemar persisted.
“Hush now!” Premoran dropped his head. “I hear people ahead.”
The sounds of a conversation grew louder as they made their way around a curve in the road.
“She said we need three more! How will we choose another three?” one of the voices asked.
“Either we find them or she’ll take us!” another replied.
“I can’t do it here. I grew up on this street. I know these families. Can’t we go to the other side of town at least?” a third asked.
“So you can pick from my neighborhood?” the first countered.
“That’s why she picked us, you fool! The harder it is for us, the happier she gets.”
When they reached the men, they could not pass easily by, the road was not wide enough. They stopped and waited, shoulders slumped and heads down.
“Hey you!” one of the men shouted at them. “No loitering about here! Go on! Go back the way you came.” He waved them off.
One of the guards spotted Alemar, ugly as she was. He walked over and raised the tip of his sword to her ear, pushing back her hood. The blood rose in Giles’ face.
Premoran slid between them and let the sword rest on his chest. “My sister is deaf. She can’t be of any interest to you. Let us pass, please. We don’t wish to cause any trouble.”
He blanched at Alemar’s ugly face, and then turned to talk to his friends. They argued for a moment and one came forward.
“Where are you going?” he asked.
“We need fresh supplies. The soldiers at the gates accepted our entry and allowed us to proceed. What is it you want with us?” Premoran pleaded.
The soldier looked to his friends again. “Fine. We’ll let three of you pass. You can come get the other when you’re ready to leave.”
“But why? All we want…”
“Don’t question me, old man. The gatekeepers do their job and we do ours. We’re responsible for order in the streets. We don’t tell them who to let in and they don’t tell us how to keep the peace!” he snarled.
“I can take out two of them before they know what happened and you could dispatch the third,” Giles whispered to Premoran.
“Yes, and then we will have the entire town upon us! We can’t lose ourselves in the crowds,” he said, gesturing at the empty street. “We must accede for the moment until I figure out what’s best.”
“You’re not serious?” Giles said.
“No one will be left behind,” Premoran reassured him. “Not for long.” Premoran turned to the soldiers and spread his arm toward Giles. “We’ll do as you request, naturally. He’ll stay with you and we will come back for him within the hour. Shall we find you here still?” he asked.
“Yes, here’s good,” the bolder of the soldiers replied. “But no more than an hour, you hear?”
Premoran shook his head in compliance. “May we pass now?”
“Go ahead,” the guard replied. He couldn’t conceal his smile.
After disappearing behind the first bend in the road, Premoran spun around on his horse. “I fear these soldiers have stumbled upon the alternative to marking another townsman they sought as we arrived. We’ll never see Giles again if we leave him.”
“What’s the plan?” Alemar asked. She knew they weren’t going to abandon him like that.
“Leave it to me,” Premoran said. “Stay here a moment. I’ll be right back.”
Premoran handed the reins of his horse to Teetoo and returned to where the soldiers stood with Giles, brandishi
ng a small pouch in front of him. A few moments later he returned, leading Giles’ horse by the nose.
“What magic did you threaten them with?” Alemar asked when they had regained their side.
“Very powerful stuff indeed!” Premoran replied mischievously.
“They will say nothing, I can assure you of that!” Giles replied.
“Not unless they wish to be shunned by the entire town and driven out into the wilds,” Premoran replied.
“I’m stricken,” he coughed. “Deathly ill. Without my medicine I wouldn’t last more than a few hours!”
“‘Tis sad but true. An awful condition, highly contagious. We’ve been able to control it by giving him these herbs every half hour or so, but without them…” Premoran feigned a tragic expression, but his eyes quickly turned grim. “We’ve been spared for now. Let’s make haste so we don’t find ourselves embroiled in another situation, less easy to extricate ourselves from.”
They walked on, leading their horses down the street. The houses grew shoddier and less substantial, and the sign of the crooked white cross more prevalent.
“They’re hiding from something,” Giles said of the absence of people. Everyone’s mind was on the same subject.
“Many are marked already. Remaining inside won’t help them,” Teetoo said.
“Marked for what?” Alemar asked.
“The soldiers mentioned it was a woman who ordered them to place these symbols on the houses,” Premoran reminded them. “I suspect one of the Possessed.”
Alemar’s heart skipped. Her last encounter with the red-caped women was almost fatal for her. They killed Kalon instead.
“Their eyes belong to my brother.” Premoran’s voice was guarded.
Alemar turned. She heard the noise first but it was too late! A dozen armed soldiers rounded the corner behind them and pressed them forward with their shouts and heckling. Another group charged down the street from the front, trapping them in the middle. Swords drawn, they herded them together.
“Easy,” Premoran whispered. “Don’t provoke them.”
The Revenge of the Elves Page 28